A homeless man has suffered a brutal attack by a passer-by, after a fight broke out in the city centre on a busy Saturday night, says a volunteer group.

According to a member of Help Homeless Bristol, the man was shoved into a signpost and given a “brutal” kick to the head as he lay dazed on the floor close to the cascade steps leading down to the harbour.

The incident happened shortly before midnight on Saturday September 29.

Rosie Closs, 34, from St George, was volunteering on the night of the attack with Help Homeless Bristol, alongside two other members of the group who patrol the city and distribute collected essentials to those in need.

She said around fifteen minutes before the attack, the group of volunteers had spoken to the victim and his female companion as they had come close to the end of their shift.

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She said: “At first we thought it was just two men on a night out fighting, they were surrounded by quite a big group of people watching what was happening but no-one was really doing anything to stop them.

“However, as we got closer I realised that it was the gentleman we had just been speaking to, and we rushed over to try and help break it up.

A street view of the area in which the attack took place (Image: Google Maps)

“We weren’t there when the fight broke out, so we can’t say whether it was totally unprovoked, but it certainly wasn’t a fair fight. The man we had spoken to earlier must have been in his sixties, quite small and frail, and the person he was up against was much younger - perhaps in his early thirties - and obviously strong.”

As Rosie and the other volunteers attempted to move the homeless man’s companion away from the fight in an effort to prevent her from being injured, she claims the ensuing fight became more and more unbalanced, with the younger man smashing the victim’s head against a metal sign post.

Rosie said: “We were doing everything we could but it was just relentless. We finally got to the point where he seemed to be calming down, and the homeless gentleman was lying dazed on his back, when he just kicked him in the side of the head. It was incredibly brutal, just horrible to see.”

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Rosie also said a young man who had been passing the incident managed to pull the attacker back who then fled. The volunteers attempted to help the victim and his companion and encouraged him to go to hospital, however, dazed and terrified after the attack, they left the scene quickly.

Rosie said: “We don’t know the full circumstances of what happened, but we do know that violence against the city’s homeless population is rife - going out on patrol in the city centre you hear so many awful stories.

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“It’s a really difficult issue to address because often the homeless people themselves don’t want to get involved with the police, but really it comes down to members of the public being compassionate towards rough sleepers.

“I think some people forget that they are human beings too, and are already in an incredibly vulnerable position by being out on the city streets overnight. We need to address how we think about homelessness in Britain and understand that it could happen to anyone at any time.”

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The group spoke to police officers on the night who took descriptions of both the men involved, and the matter was reported over the phone to police the next morning.

A spokesperson for Avon and Somerset Constabulary said: “We can confirm we were called on Sunday September 30 by a member of public who reported an assault that took place on St Augustine's Parade on Saturday September 29.

“This was a third party report and we have been unable to identify a victim or an offender so there are currently no further lines of enquiry.”